Author Denise Vega to present for Blue Horizons writing event

Denver area author Denise Vega is to visit Morgan County on Thursday, Jan. 10 when Blue Horizons hosts its annual middle school writing workshop at Morgan Community College.

Vega is the author of several popular children and teen books, including "Click Here,"' Access Denied" and "Rock On."

She will present two afternoon workshops, "Show, Don't Tell," and "How a Book Becomes a Book" in addition to joining the students for their small group original writing presentations.

In addition to writing and traveling across the country presenting to audiences of all ages in various settings, Vega maintains a website of her own, denisevega.com, with various features including a "Writing Stuff" page with frequent posts of strategies and tips for writers and teachers of writing.

A Colorado Book Award winner for young adult literature, she holds a master's degree from Harvard and a bachelor's degree from UCLA.

She was a panel presenter at the Colorado teen literature conference in Denver last March. Her first published novel, "Click Here," was the bestselling novel in the Scholastic Book Fairs/Clubs, and other titles have garnered numerous nominations and awards.

A major anticipated event of the annual workshop includes the sharing of original student nonfiction, fiction and poetry in small groups.

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For this segment of the day, each student prepares and reads his or her own writing before about 10 other students, with discussion included.

Approximately 40 outstanding seventh and eighth grade middle school writers chosen by schools across the county are expected for the event.

Other presentations and activities throughout the day will include a workshop on developing characters in writing by Jon Erickson, a local writer and annual presenter at the event, and successful interviewing with news reporter Katie Collins of the Brush News-Tribune.

A warm-up activity, door prizes, lunch and snacks will round out the day-long workshop.